Despite a divisive response from some viewers, the fifth and final season of The Boys is proving to be a major success for Prime Video, setting new records for the hit superhero series and continuing to attract huge audiences around the world.
With the season finale released on 20 May, viewing figures have surged to unprecedented levels. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the season has been averaging 57 million viewers worldwide per episode and has achieved the largest three-week ratings surge of any television series or film available on Prime Video. The latest season has also secured a place among the platform’s all-time top 10 most-watched seasons.
While the ratings have remained strong, some fans have voiced frustration over what they see as a lack of large-scale battle sequences throughout the season. Showrunner Eric Kripke previously addressed those concerns, arguing that character development is essential to making the story’s biggest moments meaningful.
“None of the things that happen in the last few episodes will matter if you don’t flesh out the characters. I’m getting a lot of online dissatisfaction, to put it politely.
“And I’m like, ‘What are you expecting? Are you expecting a huge battle scene every episode?’ At no point during the writing of it was I like, ‘Oh yeah, we’re making filler episodes. So who cares?'”
Kripke also suggested that a season focused entirely on action would have been “so empty and dull… [just] shapes moving without having any import”.
Speaking again to The Hollywood Reporter, the creator admitted that negative reactions on social media initially affected him, but the show’s strong performance helped put those criticisms into perspective.
“I’ve gone through a journey when I first started to read everything — like on social media or online — and it starts to feel like that’s the whole universe, and it feels scary, and you have a pit in your stomach,” he explained.
“So then [you see the ratings and] you’re like, ‘Oh, obviously, how many times do I have to relearn the lesson that the online world is not the actual world?’
“[The online reaction is] a fraction of very loud, opinionated people, and God love them. They’re welcome to have that opinion. But it’s actually not reflecting what’s happening out in the world. And once I saw [the numbers], I calmed right down.”
The comments come as The Boys continues to dominate streaming charts despite the debate surrounding its final season. With record-breaking audience numbers already reported and the finale now available, the show’s last chapter appears to have attracted far more viewers than the online criticism might suggest.
